New Jersey Regulation and Legislation to Watch In 2016

Christina A. Stoneburner was featured in the Law360 article, “New Jersey Regulation and Legislation to Watch In 2016.” Full text can be found in the December 24, 2015, issue, but a synopsis is below.

Pending legislation aiming to “improve work-life balance and increase paid time off” for New Jersey casino employees and the state’s labor force, may give rise to a new frontier of litigation.

Lawmakers in the state are considering a “family-geared” legislation and also working to help displaced casino workers attempting to re-enter the workplace.

The Supporting New Jersey Families Act would require employers to offer a predictable schedule and time off for school related activities to shift workers, expand family leave privileges and establish commission to a gender pay disparity study.

The first part of the package being unraveled is the Schedules that Work Act (S2933), which “provides a private right of action for employees seeking to change their work schedules.”

“Given the number of discussions that occur on a daily basis about work schedules, the private right of action will not only handcuff employers, it will flood the courts with challenges to routine employment decisions,” said Fox Rothschild’s Christina Stoneburner.

Stoneburner acknowledges that there were good intentions revolving the Family School Partnership Act (S2935), but fears that it may work against employees.

“Although the law would force employees to use paid time off, if no paid time off is available then the employee must be given unpaid leave. This law would actually dis-incentivize employers from providing generous paid leave policies,” Stoneburner said.